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Sunday, July 7, 2013

The Book That Made Me

Good day to you all! Two posts in one day! Surely you are being spoilt!

Anyway, I am blogging about something that Scott Malthouse brought to my attention. It is The Book That Made Me where people can share the books that changed their lives. I have put the press release below my links.

Waterstones invites readers to share the book that inspired their life-changing moment…

The Book That Made Me…collects readers’ experiences together in order to inspire others.

How many lives have been changed by the words on a page? Waterstones recently launched a campaign with a mission: 'The Book That Made Me…', is looking for the books that have had the biggest impact on the lives of readers everywhere, including writers, politicians, actors and other high profile book lovers.

The campaign gives everyone a chance to share the story of the book that has most affected them, offering readers the chance to keep their most treasured tale alive by sharing it with others.

Many well-known names have contributed to 'The Book That Made Me…', with some choosing the first book that really affected them, such as author Terry Pratchett who named Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in The Willows as "the first book I remember reading for pleasure." "Once I had read it, I read everything I could get my hands on", he explained.

For others, their choice reflected the first book they personally related to.Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women offered journalist and writer Caitlin Moran a role model: "I felt I could try and be the teenage Jo March in a way I couldn't be the teenagers in Sweet Valley High. I felt far more affinity to a 19th century American bluestocking than I did with Kylie."

Some contributors honoured a story for opening their eyes to new opportunities. Newsreader Penny Smith was bound for South America after reading Peter Fleming's Brazilian Adventure: "It sent me off on two and a half years of backpacking – one of the most formative experiences of my life," she said.

Jon Woolcott, Marketing Manager at Waterstones commented on the power of books and why they wanted to ask readers about the books that shaped them: "The stories on our bookshelves don't just tell of the adventures within their pages, they reveal little glimpses of who we - the readers - are. They represent different times in our lives; different interests, different hopes and dreams - what drew us in at the time.

"Now, here at Waterstones, we think it's time we all placed our most life-changing books on one big bookshelf, along with the reasons why they're so affecting, for everyone to share."

Members of the public are invited to submit the name and title of their favourite book and explain how it affected their lives. Waterstones will feature their favourite responses both in their bookshops and in an online gallery.

Jon Woolcott noted that “often, the best books are the ones that bring a little magic to our everyday lives,” and for novelist Ben Kane, one book did just that: "Tolkien's The Lord of The Rings was the story that shaped my childhood and teenage years. More than any other book, it drew me away from ordinary life, into an incredible world where anything seemed possible."

Everyone is invited to share their story, either by going online or into one of Waterstones' bookshops, and become part of an on-going journey of revelation, adventure and life-changing experiences.